Swiss Chard And Rice Soup Recipes

SWISS CHARD SOUP WITH LENTILS

Steps:

• Wash the chard and with a knife separate the leaves from the stems. Chop the stems and slice the leaves (but keep leaves and stems separate).
• In a large pot or Dutch oven warm the olive oil, add onion and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the garlic, all the spices, give a good stir, and cook for a further 20-30 seconds.
• Add the lentils, the chopped stems and the broth (alternately, warm water will work too). Bring to the boil.
• Reduce to medium heat, cover with a lid and cook until the lentils are soft, it will take about 15-20 minutes.
• Once the lentils are done, blend part of the soup with an immersion blender (alternately, transfer part of the soup into a highspeed blender, but be careful, it's hot and in this case you might want to turn the heat off and wait 5 minutes until it cools down a bit).
• Add the Swiss chard leaves and half of the coriander, push them down with the back of a wooden spoon, and cook for about 3 minutes until the leaves are tender but still bright and green.
• Turn off the heat, taste and adjust the seaoning adding more salt and pepper according to your taste. You might want to adjust the consinstency too, feel free to add a bit of warm water if you wish to thin out the soup.
• Serve with extra chili flakes if you like, chopped coriander leaves and lemon juice (about a quarter of lemon per serving is fine, don't skip it!). Enjoy.

SWISS CHARD AND RICE SOUP

Steps:

• Trim the bottoms of the chard stems. If the stems are thin and fibrous, separate the leaves and discard the stems. If they are wide, separate the leaves and cut the stems into 1/4-inch dice. Set aside with the celery and onion. Wash the leaves in 2 changes of water and chop medium-fine.
• Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot and add the onion, celery and chard stalks. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes, and add a generous pinch of salt. Continue to cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are tender, another 3 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the stock or water, bouquet garni and rice. Bring to a boil, add salt to taste, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes.
• Stir the chard into the soup, cover and simmer another 10 minutes. Add freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust the salt. Serve with fresh lemon wedges for people to squeeze into their servings if desired and Parmesan for sprinkling.

SWISS CHARD RICE BOWL WITH CHORIZO

Steps:

• In a medium pot, combine rice with 2 1/3 cups lightly salted water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover pot and cook until rice is tender, 40 to 50 minutes. Let stand off the heat, covered, for 10 minutes. Toss in 1 tablespoon butter and salt to taste.
• Meanwhile, cut the chard leaves into 2-inch pieces and the stems into 1/2-inch lengths.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Toast cumin seeds in the dry pan until they are fragrant and slightly darker in color, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour cumin onto a plate to stop the cooking.
• Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan, let it heat for a few seconds, then add chorizo patties and cook until golden on both sides and cooked through, about 7 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate.
• Add 2 tablespoons oil to the skillet, then add garlic. Cook until golden and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer garlic to a paper-towel-lined plate.
• Add chard stems and a large pinch of salt to the skillet. Cook until stems are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add chard leaves, another pinch of salt, 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon vinegar. Cook until leaves are wilted, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Toss chard with rice, toasted cumin, the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the chives, 1 tablespoon vinegar, the paprika, and salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. In a small bowl, toss together parsley, garlic chips, a generous drizzle of oil and large pinch fleur de sel. Divide rice into serving bowls, top with chorizo and sprinkle with parsley-garlic mixture.